NULL pointer dereference in Linux

CVE-2024-50048

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: fbcon: Fix a NULL pointer dereference issue in fbcon_putcs syzbot has found a NULL pointer dereference bug in fbcon. Here is the simplified C reproducer: struct param { uint8_t type; struct tiocl_selection ts; }; int main() { struct fb_con2fbmap con2fb; struct param param; int fd = open("/dev/fb1", 0, 0); con2fb.console = 0x19; con2fb.framebuffer = 0; ioctl(fd, FBIOPUT_CON2FBMAP, &con2fb); param.type = 2; param.ts.xs = 0; param.ts.ys = 0; param.ts.xe = 0; param.ts.ye = 0; param.ts.sel_mode = 0; int fd1 = open("/dev/tty1", O_RDWR, 0); ioctl(fd1, TIOCLINUX, &param); con2fb.console = 1; con2fb.framebuffer = 0; ioctl(fd, FBIOPUT_CON2FBMAP, &con2fb); return 0; } After calling ioctl(fd1, TIOCLINUX, &param), the subsequent ioctl(fd, FBIOPUT_CON2FBMAP, &con2fb) causes the kernel to follow a different execution path: set_con2fb_map -> con2fb_init_display -> fbcon_set_disp -> redraw_screen -> hide_cursor -> clear_selection -> highlight -> invert_screen -> do_update_region -> fbcon_putcs -> ops->putcs Since ops->putcs is a NULL pointer, this leads to a kernel panic. To prevent this, we need to call set_blitting_type() within set_con2fb_map() to properly initialize ops->putcs.

EPSS: 0.002 (16.3th percentile) — read the EPSS interpretation.

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 5.5 (Medium). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.

Affected products

Weakness classification (CWE)

References

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2024-50048?
CVE-2024-50048 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux, classified under NULL Pointer Dereference. CVSS score: 5.5/10. Published 2024-10-21.
How severe is CVE-2024-50048?
Medium severity. CVSS v3 base score is 5.5 out of 10.